Other Experience: Benning was a highly touted prospect way back when, drafted sixth overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs after being named the top defenceman in the WHL in 1980-81. His scoring prowess (he led the Portland Winterhawks with 139 points that season) didn’t really translate to the NHL, but he did have a professional career that spanned 610 major league games.

NHL expansion in the 1990’s was a boon to the careers of many players, but not for Benning; after spending 1990-91 in the minors he headed to Italy for a year before retiring. Where expansion did help Benning was in his post-playing career; he got his start as an amateur scout with Anaheim before jumping ship to join the Buffalo Sabres in the same role. In September 1998, he became that club’s director of amateur scouting, where he stayed for most of a decade before joining the Bruins.

What has this candidate done that makes him warrant consideration? The big point in Benning’s favour is the success of the Bruins. Top lieutenants in successful organizations are always in vogue as managerial hires in the NHL, and Benning has been at Peter Chiarelli’s side for the entirety of Boston’s evolution into a Stanley Cup contender and winner. His official bio at that team’s site summarizes his duties thusly:

[H]e serves as an advisor to General Manager Peter Chiarelli on all matters pertaining to player evaluation, trades and free agent signings, in addition to assisting the General Manager in overseeing all individuals in their specific duties for the Bruins.

Benning, in other words, has been a key part of the brain trust of one of the league’s most successful franchises and has also had a chance to watch one of its best general managers day-in and day-out for eight seasons.

He has also paid his dues. He started near the bottom of the NHL’s managerial food chain and worked his way up. Over 20 years, starting on the amateur scouting job, he has been consistently advanced by the organizations he has worked for; it’s hard to believe that kind of career was sustained by anything other than merit.

What are this candidate’s negatives? As with all first-time general managers, there is an element of risk simply because Benning hasn’t had managerial control over an NHL team before.

Beyond that, the most obvious flaw is the wrinkle in the Sabres’ drafting record under his watch. Buffalo pretty consistently found value in the middle of the draft and with late picks, but a consideration of the team’s first round selections under Benning leaves something to be desired:

Vanek was obviously an excellent pick, but with four clear-cut busts and no other standouts in nine top picks, the Sabres could certainly have gotten more value out of the top end of the draft under Benning’s watch.

With the exception of Vanek, Buffalo’s impact players came deeper in the draft. Ryan Miller, Derek Roy, Jason Pominville and Dennis Wideman were all selected after the end of the first round.

Anything else worth noting? Benning’s personal history in Buffalo failed to win him the general manager job with the Sabres that came open earlier this season, so it remains to be seen whether his links to Vancouver will do the trick. Benning played four seasons with the Canucks between 1986 and 1990, and the latter two (the final ones in his NHL career) overlapped with the first two seasons of Linden’s Vancouver career.

He’s sort of the opposite of Linden as a managerial hire. Linden’s brilliant playing career for the Canucks offsets a scanty managerial resume, whereas Benning’s tenure in Vancouver is rarely brought up but he’s spent the last 20 years learning the managerial game.

My personal take: Benning is a top-tier candidate, and nobody is going to bat an eye if the Canucks hire him. He should certainly be on the shortlist for any future NHL GM openings.

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